Maricopa Phonology

Maricopa Morphology and Syntax

PHONOLOGY AND ORTHOGRAPHY

0.1 Phonemic Inventory

0.11 Consonants

The inventory of consonants in Maricopa is

stops:

P

t

t

«

k

k"

affricate:

X

fricatives

voiceless:

(f)

s

s

X

X*

voiced:

V

«

nasals:

m

n

n^

(D)

laterals:

1

1^

trill:

r

glides:

w

y

q

.w

/f/ is found only in borrowed words (e.g. [kafe] 'cof-
fee* from Spanish), /j/ is found only in borrowed words
(e.g. [nararjk] 'orange* from Spanish). [ij] is found as an
allophone of /x? / as well. [rj] is represented in the ortho-
graphy by ng .

This inventory is the same as that presented by Wares
(1965) except that it makes a distinction between dental /t/
and alveo-palatal (sometimes retroflex) /t/. This distinc-
tion is noted in Mojave by Kroeber (1911) and Munro (1976a)
and in Yuma by Halpern (1946a), as well as in other Yuman
languages. /t/ in Maricopa is found only in post-stress
position; /t/ has unrestricted distribution. The contrast

Introduction 7

t^mmru little functional load. Some examples of the two
counds can be compared in

[max^^t] 'bear' [n^itx^^t] 'blood*
[xamat] •piimpkin' [m^t] 'land'
Both these stops, /t/ and /t/ , are represented in the
orthography by t. The non-final suffixes -t- (emphatic) , -nt-
(» again') and - pat - ('too') all contain a dental /t/. The
non-final suffix - hot - [xot] (intensifier, 'very') contains
the back /t/.

/s/ is a retroflex voiceless fricative which varies in
place of articulation from the alveolar ridge to the hard
palate (depending on the speaker), /s/ is written in the
orthography as sh.

The voiceless velar fricatives /x/ and /x^/ are Repre-
sented orthographically as h and hw, respectively.

/r/ is an alveolar trill, which is^also realized as a
tap in pre-stress position.

/X/ is a voiceless palatal affricate, represented or-
thographically as ch. The voiced interdental fricative /^/
is written as d. Glottal stop /?/ is written as ^. In the
orthography, all superscripts are lowered to the line (e.g.,
/n^/is written ny) . All the other orthographic symbols are
the sai||^p[0iihe symbols listed above as phonemes.
0.12 Vowels

The vowel inventory of Maricopa is

i i: u u:

e e: o o:

a a:

Maricopa has a five vowel system, like the other River

^ Maricopa Morphology and Syntax

languages (Langdon 1976a) . Aside from the five vowels which
differ in quality, there is a phonemic length distinction.
Thus, there are ten phonemic vowels.

The length contrasts are exemplified in

[v^k]

•sit+real»

[v^:k]

• come+real •

[i:5'^]

•face; eye'

[i:S^:]

• tooth •

[kupu:m]

•be hole+inc'

[ku:pu:m]

•be holes+inc^

[?av^]

• snake '

[?av^:]

• mouse •

[«^k]

•here^

C*^:k]

• come+real •

The vowels are represented in the orthography by the
symbols listed above, except that long vowels are written as
sequences of two identical vowels (e.g., [i:] is written ii) .

0.13 Diphthongs

The diphthongs found in Maricopa are

ey e:y oy o:y ew e:w
ay a:y uy u:y aw a:w
These, like vowels, are represented orthographical ly by
the symbols listed here, except that the long diphthongs are
represented by a sequence of two identical vowels followed by
a glide (e.g., [e:y] is written as eey ) .

Gordon, Lynn. 1986. Maricopa Morphology and Syntax.
Berkeley: University of California Press.